"Pfft...Has anyone ever told you that your playing is enough to send all the birds flying, Fitzgerald?" a sing-song voice asked, belonging to a petite woman with a long, fur coat. Two limp ears draped over her shoulders, accentuating the cotton puff of her tail. But what was more striking was the large ivory skull over her head, which hid everything but her two hyper-dilated eyes and toothy grin.

"Really? But I find there aren't as many birds to scare off these days," Fitzgerald chuckled, leaving his bone whistle to clack against his collarbone. Wearing an embroidered mantle cloak, a shadow was cast over his two, large copper eyes. A fringe of unkempt, crimson hair was swept over them, illuminating the whitish tips. Giving way for a scarlet tail to peek out from underneath his robes, alongside his pointed ears curiously quivering against his hood. 

"But what brings you to the neck of these woods, dear Hayden?" 

"Hmm..." Tapping her chin, Hayden tilted her head to the side, smiling. "Thought I'd keep you company for the time being, seeing that you're already finished with all your patrols. Did you find anything interesting?" 

"Peaceful as always. Though I must say...the forest has been more quiet lately," Fitzgerald muttered, his expression becoming vexatious. "Perhaps a certain nuisance has yet to show his face out of that sorry burrow of his." 

"Oh dear, is that why you're not wearing your mask tonight? Poor Edward may very well be sleeping in the snow the next time you show your face," his companion asked with a tinge of laughter. "Either that...or he might have found another friend to pester instead." 

"How ridiculous. That rascal having friends apart from those weird contraptions he makes? If he already fancies seeking a different company, then where else will I witness his skittish expressions?" Fitzgerald teased, licking his canines. 

"Pfft, I find it impressive that you've yet to gobble him up in your fox form, Fitzgerald." 

"Well, there's no fun in playing with lifeless prey." Sighing, the scarlet-haired man clicked his tongue. "At least I can take a break from his incessant chatter. Wilfred's covering the rest of that area, right? Where the hell is he?" 

"Hm, I overheard the rest of the shamans saying that he's investigating the source of that strange noise." 

"Strange noise?" 

"Apparently, some residents said there was a shrill sound that came from up north, ways ahead from where we are," Hayden explained while grooming one of her ears. "But nothing to trouble ourselves with. Wilfred's always been a capable Keeper, being the lone wolf he is." 

"Tch, and an annoying one at that. Tell him to go this way, and he'll go the other way—And the number of times he completes every mission ahead of time." 

"Pfft, like I said. He's pretty capable." 

"Well, whatever he's dealing with, let's just hope it's over and done with," Fitzgerald scoffed before giving a backward wave. "In the meantime, yours truly is going to curl up on a nice, warm bed." 

"Oh dear, aren't you the slightest bit curious as to what it may be? Who knows, maybe it has something to do with that special mission Chief Thiago gave us." Hayden shrugged. 

"Hmph, I didn't sign up to do overtime in the first place." 

Watching the vulpine man leave without so much of a goodbye, Hayden hummed before toothily grinning. "For someone so attuned to being an animal, you sure value your time a lot," she giggled. Leaving her expression to be illuminated under the moonlight, and causing her features to become ghostly pale. "But I am rather curious...as to how Wilfred will take care of it from here," she whispered to no one but the howling woods around her.